Infinite Possibility
by UlixesEmotion
Summary: He could keep losing. Again and again. Until he could find a way to defeat the mad titan. Even if he tried 14,000,605 times.
1. Bargain

The first time, Doctor Strange decided to make good on his threat to use the time stone against Thanos.

He decided to try the same bargaining technique he'd used against Dormammu. With a shift of his hand he created a green ring around his wrist, looking over to the fighting going on.

Drax and Mantis were down. Star Lord was bleeding out after Thanos had used a barrage of stones like bullets.

That was okay, for now. If this worked he could use the stone to bring them back in the end.

A shift in the air could be felt as Thanos came toward Peter Parker, also wounded from an earlier attack as his legs were bent at an odd angle, clenching his fist as he'd planned to simply knock him down with the force of the universe itself.

Tony Stark could be seen limping towards him, trying to get back in the frey despite his wounds.

They were losing. He had a solitary chance at the moment, with a glide over the doctor called out to the other.

"Thanos!"

Strange kept his voice calm, he needed to be strong against him in every way for this to work.

Thankfully, he'd captured his attention. The large being turning to face the sorcerer with an almost amused look on his face.

"It's about time you showed your face to me."

"I've got a bargain for you."

Tony glared at Stephen. Thinking that the other man was actually going to give up the time stone in exchange for something.

"I don't see you as pleading for anyone's life." Thanos corrected Tony's thoughts without realizing it at the time.

"I'm not. I'm offering you yours." He told him directly in turn.

"Now that's an amusing thought. How could you ever hope to defeat one who-"

Thanos turned, seeing Peter and Tony in the same position as they were moments before. He closed his lips, upturning an eye in intrigue at the two.

"You're not the first one I've been able to trap. And I feel you won't be the last. Hand over the gauntlet, and I'll let you go."

Thanos nodded, though not to agree, "Interesting thought. An attempt to trap me in time. In one moment of a reality that you feel in charge of."

His hand clenched as he smirked, "But how would you fare in a reality beyond time?"

He saw the reality stone light up, the power stone also lit up as Stephen gasped-His hold on Thanos was gone in a burst of power.

"A reality where there is no help for you?"

He attempted to reuse the gem, but felt his arms shoot to the ground. He was forced to his knees in an instant.

"Doc-"

Peter's voice was cut off abruptly as he could hear Tony Stark's audible gasp. In his peripheral vision he could see that Thanos had decided it to be humorous to turn Peter into an actual man-sized spider.

Tony glared hard at the mad titan, going in to charge before his body became a true pillar of iron instead.

"Where the physical limitations of your own foolishness are your downfall?"

His hands felt wet. Mangling. Painful. It spread to the rest of his body as he suddenly remembered this pain-Strange clenched his teeth hard as he suddenly saw Thanos reach for the time stone-

"NO!"

This was not the reality to win.


	2. Peter

Strange gasped a bit as the first reality ended, looking about desperately in this new one that he'd been watching.

He stood still as Tony and Star Lord continued to argue over who does the plan. Mantis had apparently caught Peter's attention as they had a rather odd conversation. Something about Peter being embarrassed, or whatnot.

Though from the previous reality he knew they'd only minutes before Thanos would be there in an attempt to steal the time stone.

So he walked down from his place and walked over to the grown men who were currently arguing...And honestly manking Doctor Strange wonder if they were older than Peter.

"Enough!" He called over them, looking them over as the two faced him.

Tony scoffed, "Come on, Harry-You gotta take my side here!"

"Fighting like this is going to get you both killed!" he scolded them with a scowl on his face, "We need a plan. A proper plan, and with you two bickering like children we are going to be caught with our pants down."

Drax leaned in quietly towards Peter, whispering in his...Rather loud way, "On my planet, children do not bicker so diplomatically. And we never did it without pants. Not until we are older. And are certain we can defeat our opponent."

"Uhh...Thanks...Mister Drax...Your planet sounds interesting..." the poor teen truthfully did not expect such a thing coming from the alien guy next to him...Randomly.

Strange had finished in the time arguing himself with Tony and Star Lord. A definite struggle seeing that his plan heavily relied on using Peter in it.

* * *

They all gathered at their designated locations, looking directly where Thanos would make his appearance...

...And he did, looking about, Peter instantly made his move, shooting a web in the titan's face as an early distraction.

"Gotcha!"

The teen then rammed himself into Thanos...But did nothing to him.

Strange frowned a bit as with a simple, swift grip, he picked Peter up and threw him to the side.

Tony suddenly ran over to make sure the kid was okay while the others charged at Thanos angrily, completely out of cue to what they were supposed to do.

It didn't take long for things to go south once more.

Peter was straining to breathe from the pile he was in, though struggling to get up and fight still.

Stark somehow shut his control off, making the suit keep him in place as he recklessly joined the emotional charge at the titan, screaming at the being.

Thanos crushed Drax beneath his grip, then used the reality gem to disable Stark's suit as he'd done to Peter's...

...Then he threw both of them as well as Peter through a portal into space. With it ninety percent of his plan for this time.

Mantis wasn't much a fighter, but still was kicking Thanos' hind end for all she could. A simple flick got her off of him.

And a surprise-Some blue lady crashed a ship into Thanos. It did nothing to him, but did succeed to knock Star Lord to a place he couldn't see. He hoped the man hadn't died.

This plan...Oh, it was awful. Strange should have known better than this.

Thanos was approaching him now, the new girl knocked unconscious someplace.

He closed his eyes and let this reality fade.


	3. WatchTalk

The third time he decided to simply watch the battle. See how things would have unfolded had he chosen not to act on anything.

It went about as one would expect-Thanos came and demanded the stone. Stark refused and Star Lord demanded to know where Gamora was being held at.

Instead of answering the question, Thanos shifted reality as Drax made an attempt at the titan. The latter screaming loudly as he could in rage.

Drax turned into dust on the spot.

He watched as the others charged in, an embarrassing mass of people screaming and flailing as Thanos took them down.

The blue girl, Nebula as he could hear Thanos refer to her as, still made her appearance with the others.

Strange mentally added a note that Thanos did not actually kill her, but instead contorted and mangled her body until she was incapable of movement.

Thanos then looked up and smirked as he saw the sorcerer looking down on him. Then, with a grip of his fist once more, reality shifted and pulled Doctor Strange down from his perch.

The last thing he felt would be large fingers snapping his neck.

* * *

He awoke to the next reality with an odd thought. He wished to know more about what was going on. Why the titan wished to destroy life as it was known.

He took to his previous perch once more, watching the battle again for a moment. Even seeing the girl Nebula join in.

But as his teammates were attempting to subdue the mad titan, he suddenly froze them all in time.

Thanos turned his head to face the sorcerer with an upturned lip, "...Now this is quite a surprise. Tell me, why abuse the stone to keep yourself helpless?"

"I want to talk. I need to know just-Why?"

"Why would I want to destroy half the universe?" Thanos knew where this was going. He turned his head about the place, "It all started here when I realized it." He hummed in thought as he, without realizing it, used the reality stone for but a flash to show the world in a past light. Beautiful. Perhaps once prosperous.

 _Most likely his home._

"Now, for the universe at this time, resources of all life are not enough to go around. Not for the size of population it currently holds. Not for the size it could potentially hold."

"There's a better solution to that, you know."

He nodded solemnly, "I already know where you intend to go with this."

"And where do I intend to?"

"You'd suggest I do something such as double the resources. Or something that you deem a mercy to the lives of this universe. It's a question many have asked me."

"And you'd respond?"

After asking his question, Doctor Strange suddenly realized that Thanos had come dangerously close to himself-He attempted to stay calm as the alien gripped his head suddenly. His hold tight on his skull.

Thanos knelt down to his eye level, "I would answer as I always have-That the people of this universe are like children."

He forced the doctor's head to look at Nebula, who had attempted to kill Thanos once again.

"You can give them all the tools they'd ever need in their lives. Yet they're ungrateful. They'll hoard it to themselves and never learn to properly use it...However..."

He looked distant, as though remembering something, "Make them fall. Force them to see just where their ignorance will inevitably lead. They shall prosper."

He looked back at Strange, "In a way, it reminds me of you."

Thanos gripped his other hand, the power gem shining brightly.

Then this reality went dark.


End file.
